A conductive thin film including metal nanowires or nanocarbon is a conductive film in which conductive nanomaterials having the shape of wires, tubes, or nanoparticles are continuously connected, and is formed as a coating on a substrate. Since the conductive film including the metal nanowires or nanocarbon is formed by coating various substrates with the dispersions formed through a simple solution process, and thereby has electrical conductivity, it may be used as a transparent electrode and a circuit electrode of a touch panel, a display, or the like.
In order to use the conductive film including the metal nanowires or nanocarbon as a transparent electrode and a circuit electrode, it is necessary to flow current in a specific pattern by controlling electrical connection and disconnection in a local area of the conductive film.
Normally, interconnection patterns may be formed in a substrate including a conductive film by a photolithography process or a laser etching method. In the photolithography process, interconnection patterns may be formed by forming a photoresist pattern on the conductive film by coating a conductive film with a photoresist, exposing the photoresist to UV light, and developing the exposed photoresist, and then etching the conductive film in a specific pattern by a wet etching or dry etching method. In addition, in the laser etching method, interconnection patterns may be formed by etching the conductive layer in a specific pattern using a laser.
In such methods, fine patterns may be formed in the conductive film using the well-known processes. However, problems in which differences in light reflectance, light transmittance, and haze are induced due to a difference in distribution of metal nanowires or nanocarbon between an etched region and a non-etched region of the conductive film including interconnection patterns, and interconnection patterns of the conductive film are visible due to a difference in height between the etched region and the non-etched region, may occur.
In addition, in the photolithography process, since an additional process is required to form the interconnection patterns in the conductive film, processing costs may be additionally required and productivity may be reduced.